A position enunciated by a leading Sephardic rabbi in a 1985 prisoner exchange involving Israel and Lebanon provides a rationale for understanding why the current Israeli government made the decision on the swap deal that freed Gilad Shalit, the president of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion writes.

The Reform leader’s life and accomplishments were legendary, with his deepest commitments to humanity, the Jewish people and the State of Israel, writes the president of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion.